Zach Cregger has revealed new details about his follow-up to Resident Evil.

With his adaptation of the iconic video game series and reboot of the film franchise opening this weekend to a stellar global haul expected to near $100 million, the writer-director is discussing his next project, The Flood. The Steven Spielberg-backed sci-fi thriller has already set a summer 2028 release date.

Speaking with Men’s Health, Cregger has teased that The Flood has similarities with Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 classic 2001: A Space Odyssey, which he describes as “a really thrilling horror movie about human nature.”

However, unlike his previous three features (Barbarian, Weapons, and Resident Evil), Cregger says that The Flood won’t fall squarely in the horror genre. “It's disturbing, but it's not a horror movie, although there are horror scenes in it.”

Highlighting Stanley Kubrick’s film as a “north star” while preparing the film, Cregger suggests The Flood will ask “big questions” like 2001: A Space Odyssey. “I'm not comparing it to 2001 [in terms of quality], because I think 2001 is a true masterpiece in every sense of the word, but there’s a bizarreness to that movie that’s really undeniable, and it’s also a horror movie”

After the streamlined 90-minute thrill ride of Resident Evil marked a departure from his signature brand of multi-perspective storytelling characterised by intertwining plotlines, The Flood will be somewhat of a return to his roots. “It's another bizarre narrative structure in the way that Weapons and Barbarian are, but it's not jumping perspectives. It unfolds in a very unique way that I'm really proud of.”

In addition to The Flood, the filmmaker has a busy slate of projects in development as a producer, including a film based on Trevor Henderson’s viral creepypasta character Siren Head and a prequel to Weapons centred on Aunt Gladys, the film’s villain portrayed by Amy Madigan in a performance that won her the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.